His Girl
by alexceasar
Summary: Graham Miller had no idea how he ended up here. Really he had no intention of it happening, couldn’t even tell when it started to lead him here. Actually, he knew when it started; one summer spent in Florida was when it all started.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Buffyverse belongs to Whedon; Roswell to Katims

Graham Miller had no idea how he ended up here. Really he had no intention of it happening, couldn't even tell when it started to lead him here. Actually, he knew _when_ it started; one summer spent in Florida was _when_ it all started. But for the _how_, he had no idea. How did one summer visiting his dad's family lead to him standing on the sidewalk in front of the cheesiest diner he had ever seen?

He guessed it all started with a girl. That's the way it usually does, isn't it? So many things happen just because someone met a girl. Not just any girl though. He met the sweetest girl in the world. A girl that he thought could not possibly exist, because she was too nice, too innocent and too strong of heart. He loved the way her eyes would light up when she talked about science or her friends; how she never let anything deter her from accomplishing something she wants to, especially when others tell her she can't. Like his cousin Tommy did when he said there was no way a little girl like her would be able to play paintball with the boys. Graham had never laughed so hard in his life when she was the only one left standing at the end of the game. His Uncle practically wanted to adopt her on the spot for getting one over on his oldest like that. And as for Tommy, well Liz is so sweet there was no way he could stay mad at her. He treated her like his kid sister for the rest of the summer.

He loved the way she bit her lip when unsure; how she smiled in that quiet way that said she was stronger than half the men in his unit. He thought that she had to have seen the worst the world had to offer and survived. Yet he knew that wasn't possible, that she was only a small town girl who had only left her hometown to visit family in Florida.

They had met completely by accident. She was laying out sunbathing on a towel on the beach and he had tripped over her while trying to catch the football his cousin had thrown. He had landed facedown on her chest. Looking up into her eyes, his first thought was "chocolate and vanilla". She had chocolate eyes and she smelled like the vanilla his mom used to bake with. He fell just a little bit in love with her then. In that moment, he was content to never move. He kept staring at her and tried to remember every detail of her face, the pink in her lips, the slight overbite she had, the curve of her eyebrows. She had blushed all over, starting in her cheeks, down her neck and across what he could see of her chest above the demure top of her black one piece swimsuit. At least he thought it was demure, until she had stood to pack up and he caught sight of the back. He instantly wanted to jump in the ocean to cool down. While the front had covered her fairly well, the back was non-existent. Her smooth olive skin that begged to be touched was revealed from her neck to the very top of her bottom. Never had he wanted to touch someone so badly.

Never was it said his mother raised a fool and so he managed to apologize to her and got her to agree to allow him make it up to her by buying her lunch. It went down hill from there. There was no hope for him, never mind that she was four years younger than him as he was later to find out. They spent the rest of the summer together. They played volleyball on the beach with her family, played football with his. Barbequed with some locals, danced at a bonfire party. Went sailing, smiling, snorkeling and anything else either of them wanted to try. She was so carefree and wanted to experience everything she could. She wanted a summer to never forget. And he had loved every moment of it.

But there were shadows in her eyes that made him wonder, wonder if she somehow know what lurked in the darkness. The night before she had to return home, they walked along the pier because she missed looking at the stars like she did at home. He kept looking in every shadow. He knew she noticed his strange behavior but never asked questions.

When the group of five vampires attacked them on the way back to her Aunt's house, he had never been so afraid in his life. Afraid because he would lose her, this sweet girl that he had only meet three weeks before. Pulling a stake from his boot, he quickly fought the four attacking him. After finally managing to dust them, he turned to receive the shock of his life. There was sweet, innocent Liz shoving a little stick through the heart of the last vamp. She coughed and waved her hand through the remaining dust particles in front of her. He looked down at her hand and could not help but laugh. His sweet innocent little Liz had dusted a vampire with the stick she had held her hair back with.

They had spent the rest of the night talking about what goes bump in the night and just what it was his unit did. She took it so well. She said that she knew extraordinary things were out there but she had not expected demons. He asked her how she knew what to do to kill the vampire. She said that she didn't, just that she saw what he did and figured her hair-stick would work as it was wooden too. He kissed for the first time that night and realized he wanted to spend every other night of his life kissing her. Unfortunately, they both had to leave the next morning. She had to return to Roswell and he to his unit. But before that, they spent the night lying in each others arms on the beach behind her Aunt's house, wrapped in a blanket, staring at the stars lulled to sleep by the sound of the ocean.

Now two months later, Graham had finally gotten leave again and hopped the first transport here, to Roswell. He missed his girl. Picking up his duffle, he walked through the front door of the diner and stopped a few feet in. There she was. His girl, in the most ridiculous uniform: short teal dress, a silver alien head apron and an antenna headband holding back her curtain of brown hair. He had seen a picture at her Aunt's house while eating dinner there one night, but it did not have the same effect as seeing it in person. She was carrying a tray of food over to one of the booths and smiled as she handed the people seated there the food.

"Hi, I am Maria. Are you eating alone today?" Never taking his eyes of the short brunette he was watching, he responded to the blonde he knew to be her best friend as Liz started to turn to go back to the counter.

"Well, I am hoping my girl will join me," he replied. Instantly, she froze before turning around quickly. Her mouth opened a little bit as her eyes widened.

"Graham." She whispered.

"Hey, Liz. I finally got some leave. I hope you don't mind I decided to show up here." For a moment neither moved. It seemed a lifetime to him before she responded. Running forward, she threw her arms around his neck. He dropped his duffle to the floor and wrapped his arms around her. Graham didn't care that the whole diner was now staring at him, including the man he recognized as her father from another photo he had seen in her Aunt's house. The only thing that mattered to him was that Liz was in his arms. His Liz. His girl.


	2. Chapter 2: Staying With The Family

Disclaimer: Buffyverse belongs to Whedon; Roswell to Katims

A/N: I ended up bringing in two characters from a third show. I don't know why, it just kind of wrote itself that way. My muse apparently decided to hijack this story. This is before Logan and Cooper served together in Iraq.

Liz did not want to move. For the first time in almost two months, she was right where she wanted to be, with Graham, in his arms. She didn't care that they were standing in the middle of her family's diner or that her friends were probably freaking out. All she cared at that moment was how for the first time since saying goodbye at the airport to come home, she felt at peace, safe, happy; really happy not the fake happy that she pretended for everyone else to avoid questions.

"Liz, honey, who is this?" The sound of her father's voice made her reluctantly remove her head form the place that had so quickly become hers, right over his heart. She loved that spot, loved being surrounded by his scent and listening to the sound of it beating. Graham teased her that she did it to make sure it was still beating, that he had not been turned. Moving to his side but not letting go of him, she introduced her father to the man that was quickly stealing her heart.

"Daddy, this is Graham Miller. Graham, this is my father Jeffrey Parker." Unhesitating, the young man held out his right hand to the older man. Jeff looked at the younger man for a minute, trying to gauge him. He was confident and appeared not to be nervous or unsure at meeting the father of the girl his left arm was currently wrapped around. He tried to remember everything Nancy's sister had said about him.

Liz had told her mother and him of how they meet that first night. They had laughed and joked that a summer romance might be just the thing she needed to get over Max. But when their phone calls and her emails began to talk more of how much time the two were spending together, Jeff had become worried and called his sister-in-law. She had quickly reassured him that she had joined Liz and her new friends on several of their outings, some with this man's family along. Observing him, she found him to be playful when appropriate, serious when warranted, introspective at times, friendly always and most of all courteous and respectful to all, age two to ninety-two. She also stated that she would quit smoking cold turkey for life if that boy was not already half in love with his daughter. Coming from her, a two pack a day addict, he knew it to be the gospel truth and was unsure how to fell about it.

But seeing as how in the five minutes the young man had been here, his baby girl had smiled, really smiled, not that fake one she has been wearing fort months, but her real smile that could light up a room, he supposed he could learn to deal with it. If his little girl, who was an excellent judge of character usually, than he knew this man would be worth knowing.

"Hello, Graham." Jeff took the offered hand and shook it. "It's nice to meet you. Liz and her Aunt speak highly of you. I should have recognized you from the pictures Liz had of her trip but the uniform threw me off. Had you come in shirtless, I would have recognized you right off." The men shared a small laugh while Liz blushed.

"Daddy, it was hot and we were at the beach most of the time. We stayed in our swimsuits."

"I know." No one noticed the small group of four military officers that entered the diner.

"Well, you make it sound like we were running around naked or something."

"Now, I would have loved to see that." The group turned and noticed the newcomers. The man who had spoken walked forward slipping his cover through a loop on his shoulder.

"Riley, you're here too?" Moving away from Graham, she gave the new man a quick hug before noticing the woman behind him. "Sam!" She ran forward and met the taller woman in a tight hug.

"Hey, are you going to hug all the people that come in here today?" Maria asked annoyed that her best friend appeared to be so close to these people that she had never mentioned to her before. Liz turned to her and frowned.

"No, just my friends," she answered. She turned back to the blonde beside her. "What are you doing here? What are you all doing here?" She turns to the two men that accompanied her new friends. "And who are they?" the group laughed as she blushed. "Sorry, that was rude of me. Still the question stands. What's going on?" One of the unidentified men stepped forward.

"Well, darling, I am Logan Hayes and this is Cooper Barrett. We're in the same unit as the trio here. As for what we're all doing here, well, the answer is not so much what as who?"

"What do you mean?" she asked confused.

"What the walking hormone means is that we all got some leave. I wanted to see you and they decided to tag along."

"Really? Wouldn't you rather have gone to see your own families?" Again it was the blond man with the soft Texan accent that answered.

"Are you kidding? After Cracker here told us how you and Sam here creamed all of those boys at paintball, I had to meet you."

"Girls kick ass…" Liz smiled as she finished Sam's response to that.

"…Says so on the t-shirt." They bumped fists before breaking out in laughter.

"Where are you planning on staying?" Jeff asked the group.

"Riley made hotel reservations," replied Graham.

"Well, they are canceled. You're staying here."

"We couldn't put you out like that," stated Sam.

"You're not going to put me out. We have two guest rooms. You single boys will have to fight it out over who gets the singles in the second room and who has to bunk on the pull out couch. It's actually pretty comfortable."

"Sir, we'll be fine at the hotel," Riley tried to tell him.

"I'm not taking no for an answer. My daughter has not stopped talking about you three, "indicating Graham, Sam and Riley, "and knowing her, she will probably have you two young men half adopted by next week." Jeff didn't care that the five very active adults would more than likely eat him out of house and home; they were staying with the family. His daughter had not stopped smiling since they had arrived. Liz rushed forward and squeezed him tightly.

"Oh, thank you, Daddy." Quickly releasing him, she went back to Graham and started tugging on his hands. "Come on. Let's get the others' bags and I'll show you upstairs."

"Hang on, Liz. You still have a half hour on your shift before Agnes shows up. I can't do the floor by myself tonight. It's too busy." Liz's face fell and Jeff stepped in.

"I will show them up and make up the beds. Give them a chance to rest for a little bit, clean up after traveling. Then when you finish your shift, shower and change, we'll go out to dinner. Your mom should be back by then."

"Sounds like a good plan." Graham said before kissing Liz's cheek, picking up his duffle and leading his group of friends back out of the diner.

"Get back to your tables, Lizzie." Jeff playfully commanded with a smile before heading out to show the group where to move their cars and the back entrance leading to the family apartment.

Liz walked back to the counter, smiled brightly at a watching Michael and picked up more food to deliver. The occupants of the diner slowly went back to what they had been doing, wondering at the stranger and their connections to the Parkers. A small few also wondering if they would be a threat to their small family of friends and why it appeared one of their own had been keeping things from them.

Thirty seemingly endless minutes of taking orders, serving food, watching the clock and trying to avoid the Pod Squad's questions later, Liz had delivered her last plate of food and hurried her way to the break room and up the stairs leading to her family's apartment. Entering the living room, she saw her parents seated on the matching armchairs while Riley, Logan and Cooper lounged on the couch. The younger men had apparently showered as they all had wet hair and civilian clothes on.

"I'll just be a few minutes. I need a quick shower to get rid of this grease smell and then we can go." She threw at them while rushing to her bedroom, not hearing them call out to her. She took off her apron and tossed it on her desk chair. Making her way across the room, she quickly unbuttoned her uniform and let it drop to the floor. Leaning on the dresser, she bent down to remove her sock and shoes. Standing back upright to search for a hairclip, she notices someone out of the corner of her eye and turned quickly to face them. She was shocked to see Graham standing in her bathroom doorway in nothing but a towel as water drops fell out of his fair and down his neck and chest. Never in her life had Liz envied a drop of water, but now she did. She had a flash of herself walking over to him and following the path of the water drop with her lips. She blushed at her own imagination and dropped her eyes to help her avoid the temptation. Upon seeing her bare legs, Liz realized she was standing in front of her practically naked almost boyfriend in nothing but her underwear. She could feel her cheeks go from embarrassed pink to fire engine red.

"I love it when you do that," he said reverently.

"Do what?" she asked barely above a whisper as he stepped closer to her, stopping just before their barely covered bodies would touch. He lifted a hand to her cheek.

"Blush like that. How it starts in your cheeks, goes down your neck and to your chest." His hand followed the path he described, stopping at the valley between her breasts. She did not move, hardly breathed, afraid his hand would continue caressing her, afraid he would stop. After a minute, Graham appeared to visibly get a tighter hold on himself and stepped back. A part of her was disappointed, while the rest of her knew that they weren't really ready to go that far just yet, even though they both know they were working their way to it. She also knew there was no way either one of them would let it go that far with her parents in the living room.

"There should be plenty of hot water left. Your dad said the water heater was huge enough all of us could take a half dozen shower each and there would still be plenty left." They stared at each other for a minute making Liz self-consciously wrap her arms around her waist. Graham grabbed her hands and pulled her arms down. "You never have to hide yourself from me, Liz. You are perfect just the way you are. Don't ever let anyone tell you differently." He placed a soft kiss on her forehead, gave her hands a quick squeeze and turned to exit her room. She barely heard his whisper to himself. "Should have taken a cold shower."

She smiled at the thought, enjoying the fact she could get him hot and bothered just by looking at her in her plain white panties and bra. Getting out fresh clothes and making her way to the shower, she deliberately ignored the images brought to mind of the extremely fit, extremely handsome previous occupant, while silently agreeing that a cold shower just might be a good idea.


	3. Chapter 3: A Best Friend's Ruminations

Disclaimer: Buffyverse belongs to Whedon; Roswell to Katims

A/N: Does anyone know if they ever mentioned Liz's Aunt's name or the city she lived in Florida?

**Chapter Three: A Best Friend's Ruminations**

Maria watched as Liz returned to the counter to get food to serve and moved to go back to work also. Completing her duties as a waitress by rote, she contemplated what had just happened. She was not even really sure what it was that had happened. These five strangers had arrived out of now where and Liz had known three of them, one pretty damned well it seemed. From the conversation she had overheard, Liz had met some of them while visiting her Aunt in Florida. She had obviously made friends with them. Leading Maria to wonder why it was that Liz had not told her about them. Liz and she had been best friends for so long, almost never hiding things from each other, sharing their secrets, their sorrows and all of their dreams. Even when Liz had learned the truth about Max, she had told Maria. And now after all they had been through together, especially after this last year, Liz was lying to her. Okay so maybe not lying, but definitely not telling her the whole truth. She knew that Liz had kept in contact with Kyle while she was gone in order to help him with dealing with what happened to him. Did Liz tell him about these people? Alex?

And okay, she was hurt, hurt that Liz had obviously bonded with these people and not told her about them. She was her best friend, why would she hide this? Did this mean they were not as close as they used to be? Was their trip into the alien abyss hurting their friendship? Maria just wanted to know if her friend was leaving her behind.

Maria had understood when at the beginning of summer Liz had left for Florida, understood that she needed some time away from Roswell and the group to get her head together, to deal with Max's "destiny", to deal with the death of a dream she had been building for the last year. She knew that staying here would only hurt Liz, having to see the group everyday, having to watch Tess going for Max. Hell, it was hard for her dealing with Michael and Isabel; she could not begin to imagine how Liz would have dealt with it. Liz was so connected to Max, they had a bond that seemed so strong and then to find out that Tess was Max's wife in their past life. Maria was sure Liz had seen her dreams go up in smoke in front of her eyes.

Liz had needed breathing room and she was okay with that. They had phoned, emailed and instant messaged everyday, being very careful to not say anything about the "Pod Squad". So what if she was a little pissed at Liz for leaving her here to deal with them, with Max being so damn despondent. So what if she had to deal with Michael closing himself off to her alone, with Isabel returning to her Ice Queen bitch personality, and Tess with her little smirk that said she won and not being able to smack it off her face every time she saw her. What had mattered was that her friend was drowning and needed to go where she could hold her head above water, where she could get ready to deal with everything. And Liz was back now, that was what mattered.

Contrary to popular opinion, Hurricane DeLuca knew there were sometimes that called for discretion and blowing her top at her friend for keeping secrets was one of them. Maria also knew that of all the people in the universe she trusted Liz, trusted that if she had kept something like this from her, she had a reason. She trusted that Liz would eventually tell her, when Liz was ready. That didn't mean she would not give her hell for not telling her sooner. So, Maria held it together while doing her job until she could get her best friend alone to question, and if she took a few sniffs of cedar oil to help her remain calm, well no one would think anything of it.

Delivering a couple of galaxy subs to table four, she noticed Liz again bypass the booth their friends were sitting at, trying to avoid the questions they had been trying to ask her since the strangers left. Maria was sure that they would have numerous questions for Liz about who the newcomers were, why they were here and how Liz knew them. They had a very annoying habit of thinking just because they had joined the alien abyss that gave them the right to question everything unusual about their daily routine. She understood the need to be watchful and protective of each other, but they took it to outright paranoia at times. Liz, Alex, herself and now Kyle maybe aware of their little secret but they were still individuals and entitled to a life of their own if they chose.

Figuring she should run some interference for her friend, she prepared a few refills of drinks and carried them to the corner booth near the break room door. Maria noticed the agitation of the people filling the seats. Isabel seemed uneasy, no doubt at having strangers so close to the Parker family. Tess appeared happy and irritated at the same time, happy she was sure because Liz seemed to be close to that very handsome man that she had hugged the stuffing out of and irritated that Liz was once again being the center of attention for their little group. However, it was Max that really caught her attention. He was staring at Liz, following her movements around the diner, as if she would disappear if he looked away. He was obviously upset by what they had all witnessed. Maria knew how Max felt for Liz and she knew he must be very upset to have seen another guy wrapped around her.

"Here you go guys," she placed their cherry cokes on the table and moved to pick up the empties. Max quickly grabbed her wrist and she looked him in the eye.

"Who were those people, Maria?"

"I don't know, Max" Tess snorted.

"You expect us to believe that. You're Liz's best friend. She tells you everything. You've know each other since you were little." Maria rolled her eyes at the blonde gerbil, wishing that she could stuff a rag in her mouth to shut her up as she was using that tone that said she as an alien hybrid and royalty was better than Maria, a mere human.

"Yeah, well, apparently not everything." She replied a little bitterly, before taking a deep breathe. "Frankly, Queenie, I don't give a rat's ass if you do believe me. I do not know them. If I did I would tell you because I know Spaceboy over there is gonna go all paranoid about new people in town. Here's a thought, ask Liz." She shook her head. "Or better yet, don't ask Liz. It's none of your business. Liz is a person, she does not belong to anyone and she has the right to know anyone she wants without telling you every detail of her life." Turning her head to face Max again, "Now, I love you girlfriend, but let go of my hand before I cause a scene that will get your ass thrown in jail." Maria continued to stare Max in the eyes, letting him know she was serious. Max finally let her go and she turned, making her way back to the pick up counter.

Brushing a loose strand of her hair back into her ponytail, she stood there a minute trying to calm down. Why did she do that? She didn't know. She wasn't really mad at Max, more like mad at the situation they all found themselves in. They had all become so close last year and now there was so much distance between all of them. Maria just wanted everything to go back to the way it was; the six of them, Max, Liz, Isabel, Alex, Michael and Maria, together, against everything, knowing they could trust each other no matter what. Now, it was so different. Michael hardly talked to her. Isabel was being as cold to her as she was when they first learned the alien secret. Okay, Max and she had bonded over the summer about missing Liz, but she and Liz seemed to have drifted a little. She blamed Tess, it all started when she showed up. That was who she was mad at the most and she felt horrible for taking it out on Max. But Max needed to realize if he really wanted to be with Liz, than he needed to step up and drop kick the gerbil's ass back to Mars or whatever planet they did come from.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Liz move from the tables near the booth where their friends were sitting and come stand next to her facing the kitchen.

"I heard what you said."

"Yeah." Liz reached her hand out to grab hers and squeezed it.

"Thank you, Maria." Maria turned her head to look at her, ignoring Michael watching them behind the pick up counter. "You are my best friend and I love you. Would you and Alex come over tonight, after ten, I'll tell you guys everything over a couple of pints of ice cream. Okay?"

Maria stared at her for a few moments, searching her eyes. Liz was definitely one of those people that you could read everything they felt by looking in her eyes. And now looking into her best friends brown eyes, she could see many things. Regret for not telling her everything, happiness at her new friends appearance, fear that she might reject the offer and most of all, her love. Liz was filled with love. Maria was so lucky that she had befriended Liz when she was little. Liz became her confidant, her calming agent, her logic, her guide when lost. They had become more than best friends, they had become sisters. Later, Alex joined the duo and became the brother neither one was lucky enough to have but had always wanted. They were the Three Musketeers and they would never really be alone as long as they had each other. The last year had strained that bond somewhat, but she was determined to renew it now. Maria saw in Liz's eyes the same desire to reinforce that bond.

"Okay, I'll call Alex and we'll bring the orange soda." Maria saw Agnes enter the dining area from the break room and looked at her watch, noticing that Liz's shift was now up. "You better deliver this last ticket if you want to get a shower in before dinner." Liz reached her arms around Maria and gave her a quick hug and peck on the cheek.

"Thanks, Ria. I promise to share every detail. Everything is going to be okay. You'll see." Hugging her again quickly, Liz grabbed the waiting meal before turning and making her way to counter and dropping off her last order of her shift. Maria watched as Liz practically speed walked her way past their friends table, no doubt trying to once again not answer the questions Max was trying to ask her and through the break room doors. Maria gave a soft smile at the idea of what would happen if Max followed her up the stairs to her family's apartment. Somehow, she did not think Mr. Parker would care for that.

Feeling Michael's eyes on her, she looked up at him. Looking him directly in the eye for the first time in a few days, she remembered how angry she was at him for pulling that Stonewall Guerin crap.

"What?" She asked abruptly.

He shook his head. Apparently, Michael decided not to mess with her right then and merely replied. "Order ready for table three." Seems Michael's creators had given him some survival skills after all. Who knew?


	4. Chapter 4: Getting Ready

Disclaimer: Buffyverse belongs to Whedon; Roswell to Katims

**Chapter Four: Getting Ready**

After a few hours of running errands, Nancy Parker was so glad to finally be home where she can sit down for a little while and relax, maybe a nice bubble bath and a glass of wine. Walking into her living room to find her husband directing five young people around the apartment, she had a feeling that bath would have to wait.

"Good you're back, Nan. These are the new friends Liz couldn't stop talking about, Graham Miller, Riley and Sam Finn. These two are some of their unit members, Logan Hayes and Cooper Barrett. This is my wife, Nancy Parker." Nancy moved forward to start shaking hands. "Nan, I invited them to stay with us while their here." She gave them a cursory once over taking in their appearance, fit, clean cut and young, just what you would expect from active soldiers.

"Really? A former Jarhead bunking with five Army soldiers? This should be interesting."

"Oh, hush you. I'm not going to eat them alive." They all share a chuckle. "They are going to freshen up a little while Liz finishes her shift. Then we will all go out to dinner. Want to help me make up the beds?"

"Sure, just let me put my purse down." Nancy makes her way back to the side table while Jeff leads their guests to their rooms. They stop at the first door on the left as Nancy next moves to the linen closet near the master bedroom.

"Riley and Sam, you'll be in here. There is a bathroom that is connected. It shares with the next room, where two of you boys will be bunking." Jeff moves to the next door and opens it to reveal a nicely sized bathroom before moving to the third door on the left and motioning the single men in to see the two dorm twin beds. Moving directly across the hall, he opens another door leading to a nice sized room decorated with a couple of couches, a pair of large armchairs, some bookshelves, a good sized entertainment center and a computer desk in the corner. "This is the den. One of the couches opens up to a pull out. We have had a few movie nights in here. The kids seem to find it comfortable."

"I'll take the pull out. You guys can have the singles." Graham stated.

"You just don't want to have to listen to Logan talk in his sleep." The young brunette Jeff had introduced as Cooper replied.

"Yup," Nancy laughed while pulling down clean sets of sheets and pillowcases, realizing she would have to send Jeff back for the blankets.

"Well, you might want to get started on the showers. Don't worry about having enough hot water. We have a super-sized hot water heater because of the restaurant. We could all take a half-dozen each and there would still be more. You can use Liz's bathroom too to save time. Her room is the first on the right there."

"Cooper, Logan, why don't you guys go first. You'll be faster. Riley will get clean gear out for the two of us, Graham and I will help make up the beds." The three men did as they were told and dispersed to the different bathrooms and the couple's bedroom.

"Oh, you don't have to do that. Jeff and I can handle it." Nancy quickly protested.

"No, please. Let us help. We just showed up out of the blue and are taking over your house. Besides, it's best to keep this lot busy and not able to get in trouble."

"I know exactly what you mean." The women share a quick laugh at the men's expense. "In that case, this is the set for the pull out." She handed over the navy blue soft jersey sheet set to the younger woman before turning and entering the guestroom with the singles, her husband following. Placing the extra set on the dresser, she handed a sheet set to Jeff and took a black fitted sheet to the bed on the right side of the room.

"I hope I didn't tick you off, Nan. Just inviting them out of the blue like that," he stated quietly as he began making up the other bed.

"Don't be silly. I don't mind. It was a surprise, I grant you and Lord knows I will need to go grocery shopping but I know you had a reason. Besides, I am looking forward to getting to know them. Liz talked about them so much, I half feel like I do already." She reached over and grabbed the flat sheet.

"Exactly. You should have seen her face when she saw them, Nan. She lit up like a light bulb, I swear. I want to see her interact with them. I am so glad they are here. Maybe she will keep smiling now." Hearing the shower start in the guest bath, Nancy turned to her husband.

"Will you get a couple of blankets down for me? I couldn't carry all of it."

"Sure." Jeff made his way out of the room, as Nancy moved to add the pillowcases to the pillows. She could hear the friends making up the bed in the den laughing softly with each other. She was glad they were here. Ever since Liz had mentioned them she had wanted to meet them. She was so glad that her little girl was making friends outside of the tight knit circle she had developed last year. Maria and Alex had been around forever and Nancy was grateful that they were so close to each other. There had been times she felt guilty for not giving Liz any brothers or sisters to play with growing up. But Maria and Alex had changed that. Those three were as thick as thieves. And in the last year the three had become friends with Michael Guerin; poor Michael who had been silently suffering, like her daughter was prone to do when hurting. Michael who needed someone to believe in him, someone to mother him, even though she was sure he would deny it until his dieing day.

They had also become friends with the Evans children, Max and Isabel. Nancy had become deeply worried with how attached Liz had grown to Max in so short a time. And then something happened that had hurt her daughter and she hated not knowing what it was. When Liz had asked to go visit her older sister for the summer, Nancy had been very surprised. However, she quickly agreed. Liz was a strong, determined girl with a very bright head on her shoulders. If she felt this was what she had needed to do than Nancy would support that. While her daughter may have always been a daddy's girl and their own relationship might have suffered while Liz was developing into a teenage girl, as most mother daughter relationships did, she loved her daughter with all her heart and wanted only the best for her. She may not know what caused her daughters unhappiness, but maybe these new friends would be just what her daughter needed to heal.

Moving to finish the bed Jeff had started making, she wondered just how the visit of her daughter's new friends would turn out. It would be strange to have so many people in the apartment at one time. Nancy had always wanted many kids, when Jeff had first proposed they had joked around about having half a dozen children. Unfortunately, they were never blessed with more than Liz. But she figured the next little while would give her the chance to experience what it would have been like running den mother to six kids. She was looking forward to it.

After having made up the beds and spending a few minutes getting ready to go out themselves, Nancy and Jeff settled down in the living room to wait for the kids to be ready. Logan and Cooper joined them first. While Sam was enjoying a long hot shower in the quest bathroom, Riley had showered quickly in Liz's bathroom and then joined them, leaving Liz's shower for Graham.

Nancy was enjoying the tales the young men were sharing of a couple of their experiences in basic training and even a few of growing up. She got the feeling that while Cooper was a laid back young man, Logan would definitely be considered a trouble seeker. She was still getting a feel for Riley. He seemed to be a little bit of sweet Iowa farm boy and a little bit of hardened soldier.

After a while, Liz came rushing through the front door of the apartment and made her way quickly across the living room to the hall leading to her bedroom.

"I'll just be a few minutes. I need a quick shower to get rid of this grease smell and then we can go." Nancy turned her head to stop her.

"Wait, Liz…" They all try to call out to warn her. "Well, I guess she will find out soon enough." They share a laugh, Jeff a little uneasy at the idea of what his daughter is about to walk in on she could tell. Riley continues the story he was telling about getting caught while stealing an extra piece of pie from the church social when he was seven.

Realizing Liz would be taking a very quick shower; Nancy got up and made her way to the side table where she had laid her purse earlier.

"I need to switch out my purse really quick."

"I never understood that. It's just a bag to carry stuff around. Why do you need to switch it out with a different one just because you are going out?" Logan asked.

"It's a woman thing." Jeff replied.

"She carries more stuff in a day purse, wallet, day planner, makeup, pens, maybe a notepad, cell phone, keys, granola bar, stuff she needs to run errands. An evening purse she just need her id, a little cash, lipstick and a house key." Noticing the strange look he is receiving from the other men in the room, Cooper quickly explains. "I have a mother and Aunt that are very fashion conscious; heck my Aunt is a model. You can't help but absorb some from listening to them." The men laugh a little and start up a conversation about some sports team Nancy has no idea about while she makes her way to the hallway.

Seeing Graham exit Liz's room finally wearing only a towel, Nancy stops to let him continue down the hall before her and overhears him mutter about a cold shower. She laughed softly to herself. Poor boy, it seemed her little girl was able to get him all hot and bothered in the five minutes they were alone together. Good thing Jeff had not heard that. As accepting of them as he seemingly is, somehow, she did not think that would extend to letting his baby girl being alone in her bedroom with a mostly naked man, especially one so nicely formed. 'Down girl, he's half your age,' she tells herself. 'What? I am just appreciating the scenery.' Besides, from all the things her daughter and her sister had told her about this young man, she might just be looking at her little girl's future boyfriend.

After Nancy having changed her purse and everyone finished getting ready, the group had split up into two cars and made their way to Senor Chow's restaurant, where the boys were delighted to learn was served both Chinese and Mexican food. Pushing two tables together near the middle of the eating area, they quickly place their dinner order. Hearing the music playing in the background, Riley stood and pulled Sam to her feet.

"Let's dance while were waiting," he said. Logan rose next.

"That's a good idea. Come on, GG, dance with me." Liz quickly turned to the young man standing at the end of the table and glared.

"Riley Finn, you are a dead man!"

"What?" he questioned before chuckling.

"Don't play innocent with me. I know you told him that ridiculous nickname."

"He overheard Sam and I talking and wanted the story behind it. It's not my fault."

"Yes, it is! Sam never calls me that, so it had to be you."

"Why would your nickname be GG?" Nancy asked.

"It's a long story," Liz replied as she stood. "One I am sure Graham will be happy to explain." She grabbed Logan's hand and dragged him to the small area by the jut box, quickly followed by Riley and Sam. This increased Nancy's curiosity about the origins of her daughter's new nickname.

"Well?" Judging by the blush starting to stain Graham's cheeks and the muffled chuckles coming from the man seated next to her, it would be an interesting story. She turned to the quietest of the group and raised her eyebrows.

"I only know part of it. Graham knows it all." Both parents turn expectantly to the man in question.

"Thanks."

"No problem." Cooper replied with a snarky smile.

"Well, you know we spent a lot of time with my family in Miami. Well, my Grandmother kind of has a hard time remembering people's names. Sometimes she will call us by another one of the cousin's names or just so and so's child. Well, she…ah…my Aunt introduced Liz to my Grandmother as a friend of mine…and well Grams never seemed to remember Liz's name, just that she was there with me. So she always just referred to Liz as "Graham's Girl"." Those still at the table chuckle. "Well, my cousins thought it hilarious of course."

"Of course," Nancy stated with a smile on her face also thinking it funny.

"Anyway, my cousin Tommy is a bit of a joker and started calling her that all the time. Riley was the one who shortened it to "GG". Then the little ones started and eventually everyone else did too. The funniest part was my Grandmother ended up thinking her name really was Gigi." The table laughed. "Of course as soon as Logan heard about her being called that, he started it too. And Logan will never call her anything else, I'm sure."

"Are you kidding? You'll be lucky if her calls her GG. You know Logan calls practically every female under sixty darling, sweetheart or sugar." Cooper refutes and the Parker parents laugh in response.

"Out of curiosity, what does he call the ones over sixty?" Jeff asked.

"Ma'am," he laughs. "Logan is Texas born and raised. He would never address a lady as anything else. Course, he flirts with them all and gets away with it due to his supposed 'Southern Charm,' though it seems to me that charm gets him and me into more trouble than it gets us out of." Again they laugh as they are rejoined by the dancing pairs.

"Well, Liz it seems you had an interesting summer. Or should I call you GG?" Groaning good naturedly at her mother's question while her companions laugh, Liz takes her seat next to Graham and glares at Riley.

"It's not funny. Even Aunty started doing it. By the end of the summer, I was starting to forget my own name." Again the party of new friends laughed as the waiter begins to deposit their drink orders.


	5. Chapter 5: Dinner and A Movie

Disclaimer: Buffyverse belongs to Whedon; Roswell to Katims

**Chapter Five: Dinner and a Movie**

The food was excellent, the music lively and the table was surrounded by laughter. An hour and a half after arriving at the restaurant, the group had finished dinner and was working their way through desert. Logan was surprised by how much he was enjoying the evening. Being raised in a series of shitty foster families in Texas, he had never really had a great example of the happy loving parental units but the Parker parents seemed the real deal. When their daughter was unhappy and wanted to get away for a little while, they had let her go without demanding answers, trusting her to do what she needed to do even though they were extremely worried about her and missed her while she was there.

They appeared to be good people, nice, friendly, generous and kind. They teased each other gently and made the others laugh. Hell, they had welcomed five strangers into their home because their daughter was friends with them. The best part of the evening so far had been the funny stories they told about Liz growing up. He could just imagine little bookworm Liz and quiet Alex being bossed around by the outgoing Maria. He knew from his own relationship with Cooper, they balanced each other out.

Sam was in the middle of telling the story of one of their more humorous missions, edited of course, when he looked up to notice a couple just entering the seating area of the restaurant. The maitre'd seemed to be leading them in their direction. But what had gotten his attention was the man's uniform. He was a local sheriff. Logan was not a criminal but he was enough of a wild child to have been thrown out of a few places enough times to be cautious around law enforcement. Not to mention his endless experience with the legal system while in foster care. The woman with him was medium height, with soft brown hair and steel grey eyes that seemed full of fire and passion for life. The soft blue color of the shoulder baring peasant blouse seemed to deepen the color of her eyes. And the short denim skirt drew the eyes to her legs when she walked. Logan was pretty sure that was the idea behind wearing them, more than likely for the man walking behind her. It seemed they knew the Parkers as they slowed to a stop near their table and greeted Mr. and Mrs. Parker.

"Hello, Jeff, Nan. What a surprise to see you two out and about." Jeff stood and shook hands with the Sheriff as the young men at the table rise also.

"Nancy is probably resorting to dragging him out of the Café again for a break," stated the Sheriff's companion.

"Hush, you. I know for a fact you work just as hard if not more than I do." Jeff leaned down and kissed her cheek.

"You seem to have quite an entourage tonight." The Sheriff commented while looking over the group, apparently sizing them up.

"And what a fine looking young entourage it is."

"Amy!"

"What? I am just admiring the beautiful scenery around me." Nancy shakes her head.

"Jeff, where are our manners tonight? Let's introduce everyone. This is Amy DeLuca, a dear friend and Maria's mother. And the handsome gentleman here is Sheriff James Valenti, Jr." Going around the table, she identifies each of the people seated there that were unknown to the couple. "These are some of Liz's friends she met this summer while staying with her Aunt. They will be in town for a little while." The Sheriff raised an eyebrow and looked at Liz.

"Well, I am sure you will have a nice time visiting."

"We would invite you to join us, but it looks like you are on a date and we are just about finished here." The couple lightly blushes.

"Yes, well, thanks anyway. You all have a good night." Replied Amy before the sheriff placed his hand at the waist of his date and led her to the waiting maitre'd who continued steering them to a table in the corner. As the men sit back down and Sam continues her story, Logan noticed that the Sheriff looked back at their table for a moment with a questioning look on his face. Wondering what is up with that, Logan tunes back into the conversation.

"…clothes were completely cake and we ended up having to spend three hours in the showers trying to get the dried mud off of us." The group at the table laughed and Jeff leaned forward to ask Sam a question.

"So, we know that Graham was in town visiting family, but how exactly did you two meet Liz?"

"Well, Graham had invited us to spend a week with his family before we went to stay with Riley's. It was great. His family is really nice. We met Liz when Graham brought her to lunch at his uncle's the day after he first met her. We had another football game on the beach and then were going to go play paintball. Well his cousin Tommy was being a bit of a twit about Liz being so small and a girl and how he didn't want her to get hurt." The ladies at the table collectively rolled their eyes. "So Liz of course was determined to prove she could do it."

"I was not. I just wanted to wipe that little smirk off of his face. And Riley's too." Liz interjected.

"Hey, now, I was smirking at the hole Tommy was digging himself into."

"Yeah, right."

"Please, after having dated Buffy, meeting Faith and fighting side-by-side with Sam here, trust me I know girls can be very dangerous."

"Now that sounds like an interesting story there," commented Jeff. The young people at the table laugh knowing the history there, Graham having told Liz and the team having worked previously a few times with Buffy's group. Not wanting to be diverted into talking about her husband's ex-girlfriend, Sam continues.

"A long story. Anyway, we broke up into four teams of three and Liz was made a team captain and got to chose her teammates. Because she wanted to prove a point to Tommy, she deliberately chose Graham's cousin Sarah, who has been playing paintball with the boys since she could walk and myself. Liz used her super planning abilities and had the three of us set traps, one of which took out my boy-toy over here and shepparded the others into areas that would better help us, even using the other teams as bait. But the absolute best part was when she took out Tommy by sitting in this little cleared area and started crying saying she broke her nail. He came over laughing about how girly she was. Then she looked up and shot him point blank in the chest. The look on his face was absolutely priceless." The whole table broke into fits of laughter at the mental picture this provoked.

Another half-hour later finds the group leaving the restaurant and returning the Parker's apartment. Not ready to go to bed but also without enough energy to really go anywhere, the decision is made to watch a movie. Jeff and Nancy make popcorn and get drinks ready while the younger crowd changes into more comfortable lounge clothes. After a few rounds of rock, paper, scissors, Liz wins the right to choose the movie. Logan flops himself into one of the armchairs while Cooper takes the other. Liz gets the machines ready and curls up next to Graham on the made up pull-out couch. Sam and Riley sit together on the floor in front of them leaving the other couch for the Parker parents.

"So what did you pick, GG?" he smiles as she sends him a mild glare.

"Well, I picked my favorite movie, Avanti! My Grandma Claudia and I would watch it every time she visited. I haven't seen it since a few months before she died." The room was quiet for a moment. "It's really funny. Jack Lemmon and Juliet Miles star in it."

"Well good. I like comedies and old movies." Cooper stated as Jeff and Nancy walk in and place the snacks on the coffee table where everyone can reach them before settling in on the remaining couch.

"So do I. Grandma got me hooked on them. We always watched old movies together. She wanted to make sure I knew what "real" movie stars were." Jeff and Liz laughed.

"I remember. Mom always did the same to me. According to her, these young actors now days just don't have the same charisma as the old actors, like Cary Grant, Gary Cooper or Jimmy Stewart. And she loved the old Sword and Sandal movies."

"Sword and Sandal?" asked Sam.

"You know, movies about ancient times or biblical stories, were there was sword fighting and men wore sandals. Like Samson and Delilah, The Ten Commandments, Spartacus, and The Robe. A new one would be Troy or Gladiator." Nancy pointed to the DVD collection next to the entertainment center. "Liz has a rather large collection, most given by her Grandmother and quite a few purchased by her."

"Oh, cool, maybe we should work our way through it while were here." Logan suggested.

"I have enough to keep us busy for quite a while." Liz picked up the remote and started the film.

"That was funny, GG." Riley said as the ending credits started rolling. Everyone started stretching from their previous positions.

"I'm not ready to sleep yet though." Cooper comments. The rest of the younger crowd murmured their agreement.

"Let's watch Gladiator now." Liz suggested.

"Oh, Russell Crowe is so yummy." Sam replied.

"Hey!" Riley interjected.

"What? He is a very nice piece of eye candy for Liz and me." The others laugh while Riley gets a disgruntled look on his face until Sam kisses his cheek. Nancy and Jeff rose and made their way to the hall door.

"We both got up really early today. We're going to turn in. You kids have fun. And don't worry about the sound of the television. These walls are pretty soundproof."

"Goodnight," they all replied. Waiting until the parents were out of the room and the door closed, Logan turned to ask Liz about something that had been quietly bugging him since they left the restaurant.

"Hey, Liz, what's with the Sheriff?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I noticed he looked us over kind of close when they stopped at the table and when we left. Not to mention, he kept looking at us every couple of minutes while we were sitting down." The others shared looks, wondering themselves and noticing Liz taking a minute to answer.

"Well, you are new people hanging out with the townies so that will make you interesting to a lot of people in Roswell. And Sheriff Valenti's job is to watch out for trouble makers so he watches a lot of people. And he is really good friends with my dad and I used to date his son Kyle. Maybe he was just curious about all of you."

"It sounds kind of thin to me."

"Trust me Logan. Sheriff Valenti is a good man and you can trust him. I do." Liz stands and makes her way to the movie collection to get the next movie ready. Riley also stands and pulls his wife off the floor.

"Come on Sam lets get some more drinks." The couple makes their way into the kitchen while the remaining boys take turns in the bathroom.


	6. Chapter 6: Girls Night

**Chapter Six: Girls Night or The Three Musketeers Bonding**

As he approached the door to the Parker's apartment, Alex was unsure what to expect. When Maria called a couple of hours ago telling him to show up at Liz's with some orange soda by ten o'clock for a girls night, he was surprised but happy. With so much craziness the past few months and the unending emotional turmoil being a part of the alien abyss causes, he was glad to have the chance to have a night of just hanging out with his girls. The last year had been one chaotic event after another and he wanted one night of just normal teenage friendship, no alien clues to follow, no FBI agents, no evil aliens, just his girls, ice cream and some gossip. Opening the apartment door he has not knocked on since he was in grade school, Alex makes his way into the living room.

"Hello, its Alex, is anybody here?" Alex turns as he hears two people exit the kitchen carrying some drinks, a man and woman in their twenties. "Hi." A moment later the front door opens again admitting Maria, still in her waitress uniform, antenna included. She is carrying a small duffle bag and a couple of grocery bags he assumes are snacks for tonight. She strides forward to give him the grocery bags.

"Hey, good, you're here. Can you help Liz setting up the goodies? I am going to hop in the shower real quick. I have got to get this grease smell off of me. I feel like I need to scrub a layer or two to get rid of the smell. Not to mention the way my feet ache…" and stops mid-ramble when seeing the others in the room.

"Hi, you must be Alex and Maria. I'm Sam and this is my husband Riley." The man nodded as his wife gestured to him. "I completely sympathize with the grease smell and the achy feet. I used to waitress at the local dinner during high school for extra cash. I swear after a shift the mere idea of looking at a burger made my stomach hurt." The girls shared a chuckle.

"That sounds about right. What are you guys doing tonight since Liz is going to be busy? And where is she anyway?"

"She's in the kitchen with Graham getting stuff ready for your night. Don't worry about us bothering you guys. We are having a mini-movie marathon in the den before we crash. It was nice meeting you. Come on Ry; let's get back to the guys." The couple makes their way to the den. Maria hands him the snacks and follows down the hall to he assumes Liz's bathroom to start on her shower.

"Well, I'll just help Liz then, shall I?" Shaking his head, he heads to the kitchen.

Alex stopped at the doorway into the kitchen and watched as Liz spoke with the young man he imaged was Graham, who he got from Maria's ramble on the phone earlier was the new possible love interest for Liz, a girl he considered his sister. They stood close together while prepping the ice cream he imagined was for the "girls night" the three friends were about to have. Liz grabbed some glasses and added some ice while the man continued to add vanilla ice cream to one of the bowls.

"I hope you don't think I am abandoning you guys tonight, Graham. But I kind of neglected to share the entire truth about the summer. I really need to spend some time with Maria and Alex and explain some things." Liz set the glasses on the tray beside two more bowls of ice cream and miscellaneous toppings for the ice cream. Graham placed the bowl he was filling on the tray and put the scoop into the sink. Turning to face Liz who now stood next to him, he placed his hands on her hips and smiled down at her.

"It's okay, Liz. We'll just finish the movie and turn in. It has been a little bit of a long day for us. Have fun with your friends. We have two weeks to spend time together." She smiled at him. He leaned his face down near hers. "Permisso?" Her smile turned into a grin at the reference to the movie Alex knew was one of her favorites, having been required to watch it several times with the girls and Grandma Claudia.

"Avanti." He closed the miniscule gap between them and gently kissed her. Alex felt like a voyeur watching such a moment between one of his best friends and apparently her new beau. It seems like he missed a few things in the catching up on summer events portion of their conversations.

After a moment, Alex cleared his throat. They separated and turned their heads in his direction.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I just wanted to let you know that Maria and I arrived."

"No problem." Liz blushed and motioned Alex over to them. "Alex, this is Graham Miller. Graham, this is one of my best girlfriends and de-facto brother, Alexander Whitman." The older male holds out his hand to Alex who shakes it after transferring the bags all to one hand. Sizing him up, Alex immediately saw what he was sure attracted Liz to him. While he was no doubt handsome, Graham Miller also exuded trustworthiness and genuineness. He was definitely someone that you would feel comfortable sharing your secrets with. Of course in the alien abyss that could be dangerous and very misleading. However, he also knew that his friend was an excellent judge of character and that even though they were a part of this huge secret they had to keep themselves open to the possibility of new friends and not isolate themselves.

"Nice to meet you, Graham. Any friend of Liz's is a friend of mine."

"Thanks, you too. Liz has told me so much about you, I feel like I already know you."

"All good things I hope."

"Of course." Graham grabbed the ice cream container, closed it up and placed it in the freezer. "I am going to join the guys. You guys have fun." He squeezed Liz's hand before making his way out of the kitchen. Alex put the bags on the counter while Liz went to the cabinets and got some bowls out. Emptying the snacks onto the counter, he started opening them for Liz to pour into various bowls.

"Gummi worms, hot tamales, Jelly Bellys, caramels, Jolly Ranchers, Crystal Sticks, Sour Patch Kids, Hershey's bars, salt water taffy, tootsie rolls, Blow pops and jawbreakers…Wow, Maria went all out on the candy this time, huh?"

"Yeah, she seems to be having a sweet craving. Let me get another tray for these bowls." While emptying a couple of the bags into some of the bowls, Alex watches as his friend moves to another cabinet and digs around until she finds another tray. He wonders what exactly is going on with his friend lately. She has been so quiet and reserved from the group. He knows the whole destiny thing threw her for one major loop. It was clear to anybody with eyes that Max and Liz shared a connection. But he also saw how peaceful she seemed just now, less stressed than normal. And frankly if that Graham guy was what made her that way he had no problem with the train wreck that was Max and Liz ending.

Finished with opening the candy, he placed to bowls on the new tray and grabbed the bags of soda with his free hand.

"If my lady would be so kind as to carry the ice cream, our sugar orgy can commence." Liz broke into laughter as she grabbed the other tray and made her way out of the kitchen and to her bedroom.

"Don't ever change Alex." He smiled as he followed her.

Setting up the goodies on the table on Liz's balcony went quickly. While Alex put some music on, she snagged a couple of snuggly blankets for them to use as the night got cooler. Alex made his way over to the edge of the balcony next to the telescope Liz used to use and stared off into the distance at the stars.

"Its amazing isn't it?" Liz walked up behind him to also gaze at the stars. "How different it feels to look at the night sky now that we know the existence of the Czechoslovakians, like the whole world feels a little smaller now."

"Yeah." For a few minutes, the friends that belonged to the exclusive "I know an alien" club were quiet, contemplating their own thoughts. They both turned at the rustle of clothing as Maria climbed through Liz's bedroom window and made her way over to the table of goodies.

"Alright, babes, let get this "Girls Night" started." Alex followed Liz over to the table to get their own desserts when he finally noticed Maria's pajamas. While the shorts were nothing special, just black girly boxer shorts, the white tank top had "I was abducted by aliens and all I got was this lousy shirt!" written in black on it with a picture of a little red car that looked suspiciously like her mom's Jetta and a flying saucer over it.

"Subtle, Maria, real subtle." Maria giggles and plops down on one of the lawn chairs scattered around.

"Like it? I had Amidala make it for me after that whole thing in Marathon." Liz and Alex join in her giggling as they get comfortable in their own spots.

"I am surprised she did it."

"She probably figured I could get it made at a store anyway. And the idea of Michael going ape over it probably helped." The friends laugh again at the image they each had of Michael's reaction to it.

"So, Lizzy, what's up with the group that showed up today? Who are they? How did you meet them? And what is the deal with the beefcake you were wrapped around earlier?" Alex stopped his spoon that was on the way to his mouth and raised an eyebrow at this.

"When was Liz wrapped around beefcake?" Liz blushes while taking a bite of her vanilla ice cream.

"I was not wrapped around him. And Graham is not a beef cake, which implies he is just a pretty face and he is very smart."

"Technically, it implies that he is a pretty body but anyway, what is the deal? After you left here all brokenhearted over Max and his destiny, I totally did not expect you to just jump into some relationship with some guy you just met and I mean in all the emails you sent and all the times we talked on the phone you never mentioned you were getting all snuggly with some guy. Why did you lie? You used to tell me everything Liz. I mean do you even know this guy; he could be a Skin or a federal agent. He could be using you to get to the Czechs…" Alex reached over and placed his hand over Maria's mouth. Maria narrowed her eyes at him and looked to be ready to start a demonstration of why she was called Hurricane Deluca. Alex knew the wait must have been killing her but she needed to calm down if she was going to actually hear anything Liz says.

"Take a breath and let Liz answer a question before asking her another one, Ria. You know Liz always has a reason for everything she does. Give her a minute to explain before exploding, huh?" She appeared to calm down and nodded her head after he removed his hand.

"Thanks, Alex. I never lied to you, Maria. I told you I had met some other people while visiting my family and was hanging out with them. I didn't tell you how close I was getting to Graham because I didn't know how. I didn't want you to be mad at me for leaving you here and then making another friend in Florida, as if I was forgetting you or something. I know you and Alex were struggling with dealing with the Czechs here while I got to go away. I felt like I was abandoning you or something. I just needed to get away to breathe and try to deal with this all." Liz leaned forward and placed her half frozen ice cream down. "I want to tell you everything about this summer, how I met Graham and then Riley and Sam; beach volleyball; going sailing; kicking his cousin Tommy's butt at paint ball; spending time with Aunt Madeline and my cousin Nate and all the fun things we did while there."

"I think we would like that, huh, Maria?"

"Definitely, Alex. Don't feel bad about leaving Liz. I understand, I do and I don't blame you at all. I just wish that you felt like you could have been completely open with me." Alex watched as Maria stared at her own dessert before taking a bite. "Ever since I got involved with the Czechs I feel like we are drifting apart. I never thought that would happen you know? The three of us were always going to be closer than anything, the Three Musketeers."

"I know me too. This whole think has been hard on all of us. But I think if we stop hiding things from each other and be honest about everything then we will be stronger for it. And maybe this whole alien abyss won't strangle us."

"Okay, then. We start right now. No more letting the Czechs run our lives, no more secrets, no more avoiding the truth, no more dealing with the pain alone or any of this being strong crap. We ARE the Three Musketeers. We tell each other when we hurt, we rely on each others, we trust each other to help us deal with this insanity we call a life..." Maria put her bowl on the table and held her hand out fist together. "All for one…"

Liz looks at Maria with tears in her eyes as she leans forward and places her hand on top of hers.

"All for one," she says. Both of them turn to look at the remaining member of their little group. Alex looks at his girls and remembers all the times he felt like they were hiding something from him, all the times he wanted to be there for them and was not able to because they were not honest with him; he remembers how he felt learning their secret; how worried he was for them and the others; how hurt he felt when Isabel turned away from his friendship. He looks at the two girls he has considered his sisters since before he can remember and smiles. He leans forward and placed his hand on top of theirs.

"All for one..." The three of them finish the statement together "…and one for all." The friends clasp hands for another moment before sitting back with their snack choices once more.

"Okay, now Liz start talking. How did you meet this Graham?" Alex sensed a story as Liz blushed and smiled slightly. He looked forward to hearing this.

"Well, I was at the beach…"

And so the trio of friends, whose bond had been strained by the last few months, spent the night sharing stories of Liz's adventures in Miami with her family and new friends and strengthened those bonds.


End file.
